DARTS ACE SLAMS WADE OVER PREMIER LEAGUE SNUB CLAIMS

PAUL NICHOLSON has told James Wade to “look in the mirror” after slamming the veteran’s claims that he was unfairly snubbed for the Premier League.

‘The Machine’ reached multiple major finals last season and claimed the Players Championship 19 title but still missed out on selection for the weekly invitational tournament. 

World No. 11 Wade admits he is “struggling” with the omission and believes the PDC have “overlooked the previous 11 months”, instead placing too much emphasis on his second-round World Championship defeat to Ricky Evans. 

Former pro Nicholson questioned whether Wade’s season truly stacked up against the competition. 

He told Sporting Life: “James Wade expressed his disappointment on social media about missing out on the Premier League but did he honestly do enough to get an invitation for it?

“He won very little and was a serial runner-up. I think some of these dart players need to take a long, hard look at themselves in the mirror.

“This is one of the most competitive fields in darts, if not the most competitive field of darts.

“You’ve got eight spots, and you’ve got about 16 players thinking they should be in it.”

Nicholson believes Wade’s frustration is out of step with reality and warned that reputation and past achievements no longer guarantee selection.

He added: “Now, realistically, did James Wade think that he’d done enough?

“If he believes that, fair enough. But I think 99% of people around the world will say, no, not quite enough this time.

“There was a time that making the final of the World Matchplay was enough to get picked but that was about 10 years ago. Not now.

“And once again he certainly didn’t do enough at the World Championship, and that’s something that has to change in future if he’s to earn his spot.”

The Aldershot slinger has not featured in the competition since 2022.

11-time major winner Wade claimed the title in 2009 and has also finished runner-up twice.

Image by Taylor Lanning.